ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris)

[peter]

03 - CHINA

For now, it is assumed that the only tigers who survived the Toba-eruption about 75.000-100.000 years ago were living in northern Indochina or southern China. From there, they later spread again. Here's a map of China today:

*This image is copyright of its original author

This is a map of China in 1758. It shows China was populated by 5 local types (subspecies): virgata (north-west); altaica (north-east); tigris (south-west); amoyensis (central and south China) and corbetti (south). I would add styani in central and northern China, as the information I have (skull and body dimensions) point towards a clear distinction between north-central China (styani) and south-east China (amoyensis). Styani apparently was a larger animal. This is the map with subspecies (1758): 

*This image is copyright of its original author

    


Tigers in north and central China were to first to disappear. Those in south-east China were last seen somewhere in the seventies or eighties of the last century. Panthera tigris amoyensis apparently survived in captivity. This could have been one of the last in Europe (adult female in the Berlin Zoo, 1972):

*This image is copyright of its original author

This one, an adult male, survived in a facility in Fujian (2003):

*This image is copyright of its original author

Half a century earlier, Panthera tigris amoyensis was common in many parts of south-east China. H. Caldwell, an American missionary with a passion for hunting, wrote a book about his experiences. Here is a photograph of a tiger shot in south-east China in the last century (well before World War II):

*This image is copyright of its original author

 
  

Caldwell's book was called 'Blue Tiger'. He saw 'blue' tigers on more than one occasion. Although his descriptions were clear as water, many had doubts about the colour. I don't know where this photograph was taken, but one has to assume it was China. A recent photograph. And what do we see?

*This image is copyright of its original author

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